Airlines resume services as Fiji recovery gets underway

The Fijian Government has reported all visitors to the country as “safe and comfortable” in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Winston which smashed the Pacific island nation on Saturday night killing at least six people.

The Minister for Industry, Trade and Tourism, Hon. Faiyaz Siddiq Koya stated that all properties have taken all necessary precautions and actions to ensure that their guests are safe and are taken good care of.

“Furthermore, there are no reports of any significant structural damage to the majority of hotels in Viti Levu, except for some properties in the Rakiraki area” he said.

“We understand that friends and families are very concerned, however, we request everyone to remain calm. Cyclone Winston has caused extensive damage to the communications infrastructure, hence, mobile and Internet communications in some parts of Fiji maybe affected. However, communication is active in Suva, Nadi, Denarau and along the Coral Coast.”

The minister confirmed that, as soon as flights resume, Fiji Airways will prioritise guests who want to go back home with flights expected to be back to normal by Monday.

Some airlines will resume flying in and out of Fiji after a tropical cyclone tore through the islands, leaving homes flattened and at least five people dead.

As the clean-up effort began after Cyclone Winston, the strongest cyclone on record to hit the Pacific islands, Virgin Australia, Fiji Airways and Air New Zealand said flights would resume on Monday.

Unrelenting rain and downed powerlines hampered relief efforts on Sunday as officials assess the damage.

Virgin updated its Monday flight details about 4.50pm on Sunday, giving relief to stranded tourists.

People whose flights were cancelled will be provided with updated flight details, Virgin said in a statement.

Fiji Airways advise passengers due to the destruction caused by the cyclone, some services out of Nadi on Monday may operate without its regular catering.

Air New Zealand cancelled flights in and out of Nadi on Sunday but said scheduled services would resume on Monday.

Jetstar’s flights between Sydney and Fiji remained cancelled for Monday.

A decision on Jetstar’s Tuesday flights will be made on Monday.

The devastating category-5 cyclone that swept over Fiji led the government impose a nationwide curfew.

Winston made landfall late on Saturday, delivering wind gusts of up to 325km/h.

Weatherwatch says the storm was the strongest on record to hit Fiji.

The cyclone tore through Fiji with winds gusting to 325km/h and waves up to 12m high, cutting communication across much of the country of almost 900,000.

Entire villages have reportedly been destroyed and one elderly man was killed on Koro Island, northeast of Suva, when a roof fell on him.

Grave fears remain for others in low-lying river areas and on outer islands.

Australian Red Cross worker Susan Slattery said persistent, heavy downpours were complicating early responses to the widespread damage.

“A lot of the communities affected are in low-lying areas and on islands so continued rain will add to the flooding risk,” she told AAP from Suva on Sunday.

“It affects our access into those places that are the hardest hit, including smaller islands that are a long way away.”

Mobile phone signals and landline services had also been hit, making it difficult for communication and co-ordination among agencies.

UNICEF Pacific aid worker Alice Clements said Suva was spared the full force of the cyclone’s wind blasts, with the storm changing direction at the last minute when it made landfall late on Saturday.

The howling winds and driving rains that lashed the Fijian capital paled in comparison to what those in the eye of the storm experienced, she told AAP on Sunday.

“We’ve seen photos of houses that have been completely flattened – there is literally nothing standing,” she said.

“These are people who were incredibly vulnerable to start with and now they’ve had potentially everything taken away from them.”

Schools will be closed for at least a week amid concerns of flash flooding and mudslides.

Australia and New Zealand offered military aircraft to assist with aerial damage surveillance of the outer islands in the first wave of aid.

About 1300 Australians were registered with DFAT as being in Fiji but that figure was likely to be far higher, given up to 350,000 visit Fiji every year, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said on Sunday.

Image credit: iStock

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